Steam boiler



Jan. 12 1926 J? M. SPRINKEL STEAM BOILER Filed August 23, 1920 VVE/WUR.' JAMES A7, SRP/N/(EL, 5V @Kaw x @ox Patented Jan. 12, 1926.

Unirse sra'rss JAMES ivi. srnruknn, or ennemi, rumors.

sanear norman.

Application filed August 23, 1920..' Serial N'O. 405,374.

Y 10 all 'whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JAMES M. SrniNnnL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Aurora, in the county of Kane and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful In'iprovement in Steam Boilers, of `which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to steam boilers and is adapted more particularly for high pressure operation in steam driven motor Vehicles. One of the. disadvantages of steam driven road vehicles such as trucks and automobiles is that they are. operated atV high pressure and that a great deal of water of necessity passes through them in comparison to the size of the boiler. Furthermore, it is frequently necessary to use water in which there is a good deal of solid matter in suspension, as a supply of good water is not always available. The result is that usually sediment rapidly collects in such, boilers, and after a half inch or so of sediment has collected at the bottom, and baked hard, the heat of the llue gases burns out the tubes. One of the lobjects of my inven- 'tion is to remedy this difficulty by providing a boiler in which the heads and tubes may be readily removed from the shell, or vice versa, for cleaning purposes. In other words, one of the objects of the invention is to provide a practical take down boiler. Another object is to promote thermal eliiciency by providing a jacket or outer chamber from which the air may be exhausted, to thus insulate the boiler from the surrounding atmosphere and reduce the loss through radiation. Still another object of the invention is to form a mud trap in which the sediment will tend to collect and from which it may be drawn from time to time without necessitating taking the boiler apart.

I accomplish my objects by the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which- Figure l is a top View o-f the complete boiler;

Figure 2 is a sectional View on the line 2-2 Figure l and Figure 3 is a fragmentary detail showing in section a suitable type of gasket and grooves for producing a tight connection between the shell and the heads.

Like numerals denote like parts throughout the several views.

In the form selected to illust 'ate the invention, the boiler has lire tubes l which are arranged vertically and terminate at their upper and lower ends in the boiler heads 2, 3. The tribes are permanently fastened to the heads `and convey the flue gases through them and through the body of the boiler'. 'lhe sides of the boiler are formed by a 'main shell 4l, which, by preference, is reinforced by annular steel bands. At the foot of the shell is a flange 8 which extends outward and makes surface contact with the flange 2a at the circumference of the lower head. 'lhese flanges are detachably secured together by bolts 10. In order to insure steam tight connection, it is desirable vto linterpose copper gaskets l2 in the manner shown in detail in Figure 3. In this case, opposed grooves let are formed in the flanges and a copper gasket is employed which is of somewhat larger diameter than'the width of the grooves. The result is that when the flanges are forced together, theigas'kei automatically conforms more or less completely to the configuration of the grooves and an eilective joint is produced.

At the upper end, the shell encircles the upper head 3 and has a flange 16 which extends inwardso as to make contact with the upper surface of the head at the peripheral margin thereof. These parts are also detachably 'secured together by bolts l0 and gaskets '12.

A mud trap is formed in the lower head and by preference assumes the form of an annular depression 18 located just inside of the shell. Screwl plugs 20 screw into this depression at the bottom and by unscrewing them the boiler may be washed out, and the sediment removed.

Surrounding the main boiler shell is an outer shell 24 which is preferably of thinner gauge material, as it is not, in practice, subjected to any great degree of strain. While the shell may be formed in various ways, it is desirable to make it in the form of an ordinary cylinder open at the lower end so as to make a drive lit with the rim of the flange 8 and with an inward projecing flange 2G at the upper end which enables it to make a drive lit with the sides of the boiler shell near the top.

A pipe 2S extends upward from the upper boiler head for leading the steam to the point where it is to be used.

In practice, when the parts are assembled a's shown, the major portion ot the air is withdrawn from the outer shell or jacket 24" which creates a so-called vacuum therein, and eli'ectively insulates the boiler so that the loss by radiation isreduced to a minimum. Ordinarily, most of the sediment can be removed by unscrewing the plugs 2O and washing out the interior of the boiler. Scale, however, cannot so readily be removed, and when a more thorough cleaning is desirable, the various bolts l0 are removed, whereupon the shell t, and with it the outer shell 24, can be lifted oil' bodily, thus exposing the tubes and the inner sides of the heads so that they may be thoroughly cleaned. The inside surface of the boiler 'shell t is also thus made accessible so that any scale which may be deposited on it can also be removed. After the insides of the boiler have thus been cleaned, the shell may be again lowered into position over the upper head, after which the parts may be bolted together and the boiler once more put into service. It will be noted that as a result 'of this construction, it does not become necessary to disturb the lire tubes in any way nor to disturb the upper or lower heads nor the piping which in practice is connected to them. Nor is it necessary to remove the outer shell 24, as it virtually becomes a part of the inner shell and may at all times stay with it, consequently it is not necessary to recreate the vacuum within the outer shell every time the shell is re moved for cleaning purposes.

It will be seen that in the form shown, the gaskets are placed between two pairs of surfaces which, when the Shell is being positioned, approach directly toward each other-that is, the shell flanges `do not approach the heads tangentially, but perpendicularly to them. The movement is normal to the plane of the heads. This makes it possible and practicable to introduce gaskets between the cooperating` surfaces, and these may be as large as desired. It is even possible to employ two gaskets at each joint instead of one, as shown.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

ln a device' of the class described, a lower head, an upper head of less diameter than the lower head, tubes having their ends mounted in the. heads, an inner shell surrounding tlie upper head and provided at its upper end with an inwardly extended annular flange overlapped on Ythe outer surface of the upper head, the shell being provided at its lower 'end with an outstanding annular ilange resting on the lower head, the pe.- ripliery oi the said flange being spaced from the periphery oi' the lower head to form a shoulder, securing devices connecting the lirst specilied flange of the shell with the upper head, securing devices connecting thev last speci lied flange oi' the 'shell with the low er head, an outer shell resting on the shoulder and engaged with the periphery of the last speciied Hangs, the outer surface of the outer shell being substantially flush with the outer edge of the lower head, the outer shell being provided at its upper end with an inwardly extended flange engaging the inner shell in a plane substantially coincident with the upper head, the lower head being provided with an annular depression located closely adjacent to the inner shell, and means for draining the depression.

ln witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name.

JAMES M. SPRINKEL. 

